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Trump, Biden Talk By Phone About Coronavirus

   DailyWire.com
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 27: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks on the phone with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar on the phone in the Oval Office of the White House June 27, 2017 in Washington, DC. President Trump congratulated Prime Minister Varadkar to become the new leader of Ireland. (Photo by
Alex Wong/Getty Images

President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden spoke Monday afternoon about the coronavirus crisis, Fox News reported.

“A source familiar with the call said they spoke about the response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Fox reported. “The call comes after Fox News first reported last week that Biden offered to have a phone call with Trump directly to discuss a strategy to combat the virus.”

Trump called out Biden early Monday, writing on Twitter, “”[W]hat ever happened to that phone call he told the Fake News he wanted to make to me?”

“Joe Biden wanted the date for the Democrat National Convention moved to a later time period. Now he wants a ‘Virtual’ Convention, one where he doesn’t have to show up. Gee, I wonder why? Also, what ever happened to that phone call he told the Fake News he wanted to make to me?”

Biden fired back in his own tweet on Monday, offering to keep a chat on the table.

“Mr. President, I hope we can gather in Milwaukee, but that is going to depend on you stepping up and doing what needs to be done to handle this pandemic,” Biden tweeted, before plugging his campaign page outlining his own response.

He added: “Happy to discuss anytime.”

“We had a wonderful warm conversation,” Trump said at his daily White House briefing on Monday. “He gave me his point of view, and I fully understand that,” Trump said, adding the call lasted about 15 minutes.

“VP Biden & President Trump had a good call. VP Biden shared several suggestions for actions the Admin. can take now to address the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and expressed his appreciation for the spirit of the American people in meeting the challenges facing the nation,” Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s deputy campaign manager, wrote on Twitter.

“Earlier Monday, a source familiar told Fox News that despite the president expressing interest in having a phone call with the Democratic frontrunner, the Biden campaign did not hear from the White House,” Fox wrote.

The source told Fox News that the Biden campaign reached out to the White House Monday to set up the call, which took place Monday afternoon.

Last week, when asked whether he would be receptive to a call with the likely Democratic presidential nominee, Trump said: “Oh sure, absolutely. I’d love to speak with him.”

Trump said last week: “I always found him to be a nice guy. I don’t know him very well, frankly, but I think he’s probably a nice guy. If he’d like to call, I’d absolutely take his call.”

Biden’s offer to chat with Trump came after White House adviser Kellyanne Conway called on the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee to stop criticizing the Trump administration’s efforts to handle the coronavirus and instead “call the White House today and offer some support.”

Biden last week finally backed restrictions on travel from China — two months after Trump put them into place to stem the spread of the coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan, China.

Bedingfield said on CNN on Friday that the former vice president “supports travel bans that are guided by medical experts, advocated by public health officials, and backed by a full strategy.”

“Science supported this ban, therefore he did, too,” Bedingfield said.

On Jan. 30, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency of international concern. The same day, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for the first time confirmed person-to-person spread of the Wuhan virus and applauded WHO’s decision. And also that same day, Trump created the White House Coronavirus Task Force to coordinate U.S. efforts regarding the new disease.

The next day, on Jan. 31, the president declared coronavirus a U.S. public health emergency and issued a travel ban between the United States and China. Campaigning in Iowa that day, Biden criticized Trump’s China travel ban, saying, “This is no time for Donald Trump’s record of hysteria and xenophobia.”

On Feb. 1, Biden again criticized Trump for the move.

“We are in the midst of a crisis with the coronavirus. We need to lead the way with science — not Donald Trump’s record of hysteria, xenophobia, and fear-mongering. He is the worst possible person to lead our country through a global health emergency,” he wrote on Twitter.

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